[TNS-list] Sign-in procedures at Arrival and Dismissal...

[Milo Novelo]

Hi everybody,

I hope you're enjoying the long weekend and having a peaceful day in
remembrance of Dr. King.

I'm sending a preview of a letter I'll send home in backpacks tomorrow so
that you have the latest version of the procedures we're using for managing
access to the building.  I welcome your feedback and look forward to
working together to get this system running smoothly.

- Milo
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Dear families,



As you have seen by now, we are in the process of reviewing and revising
our security and sign-in procedures to bring them in line with the
instructions of the division of school safety and to make our school a
safer place. Each day over the past two weeks, we’ve had about 80 families
signing in during arrival.  Thank you for your cooperation.



Our school’s level of family access is extremely rare in DOE schools, and
it is something that we are proud of and committed to maintaining.  Seeing
how your child connects to peers, routines, teachers, etc. can give you an
important window into your child’s development and improves the sense of
partnership and connection between you and the school.



But in order to maintain this level of access, we need to work together to
make sure that only people authorized to enter the building are allowed to
enter, and that we keep a record of everyone who has entered the building.



Below is an outline of the full set of “visitor control procedures” we will
be implementing.  I’ve already made adjustments based on feedback from
parents, and I encourage you to problem solve with me in order to get the
system running as smoothly as possible.  I’ve been asked to discuss these
procedures at the next PTA meeting (Th 1/19 at 8:30am) and at my next
coffee hour (Tu 1/24 at 8:30am).  I look forward to hearing from you then
(or by email in response to this note).



Yours,

Milo

* *

* *

*
-----------------------------------------Procedures---------------------------------------
*

*At All Times:*

·       Adults need proper ID to enter the building. (That means a driver’s
license, NY State Identification Card, passport, school ID with picture or
work ID with picture.)

·       Entering and exiting the building should happen through the main
double doors. Side and back doors are only used in emergencies.

*At Morning Drop Off:*

·       Everybody entering beyond the safety agent’s desk must be
identified and must sign in.  Because of the volume of people entering the
building between 7:45 and 8:45, we have had Gladys and Noemi making visual
IDs of people entering the lobby, and then asking them to sign in next to
their child’s name.

·       Lobby Dropoff:  Parents and caregivers can drop off students in the
lobby from 7:45 - 8:25 am and are welcome to remain with their children
until class starts.

·       Dropoff at Classrooms:  Beginning at 8:23, parents may begin
bringing their children up to the classrooms.  Class starts at 8:25, so
unless there is a special event or unless you have an appointment, you
should expect to head back down once your child is settled.

·       After 8:45, sign-in will happen according to the plan below for
visitors



* *

*Visitors During the School Day:*

·       From 8:45 am – 2:40 pm, visitors who enter the building MUST sign
in with the safety agent. You’ll present ID, sign the logbook, and receive
a visitor’s pass – turquoise for Neighborhood School, yellow for PS 63 –
Star Academy. Please wear your pass the entire time you’re in the building.
You’ll then go to the *main office* to check in about visiting the
classroom. *If the person you are here to see is not available, the office
staff *will help you schedule a meeting at another time. This will ensure
that class time isn’t interrupted.

·       If there is a special event in a classroom, the teacher will leave
a list of who was invited with the safety agent. Families will follow the
same procedures as stated above, BUT can go straight to the classroom
without checking in at the office.

·       When visitors leave the building, they’ll turn in their passes to
the safety agent. This will allow the safety agent to log their time out of
the building.

*Dismissal*:

·       From 2:40 - 3:40 pm, we’ll use the same procedure that was used to
sign in visitors at morning drop-off. Parents and caregivers who pick up
students from the lobby may wait in the lobby. Parents and caregivers who
pick up students at their classrooms, or who want to visit the office may
go upstairs beginning at 2:40.

·       During dismissal, all students, parents and caregivers should *exit
through the main double doors*. If you’d like to go to the park, you should
also exit through the front doors and enter the park through curbside the
gates.



*Dismissal from Afterschool Programs (Wingspan and University Settlement):*

·       The regular pickup time from Wingspan is from 5:00 – 6:00 pm.  For
University Settlement, the pickup time is from 5:30 – 6:00 pm.

·       Beginning at 5:00 Wingspan students will be in the small cafeteria,
and beginning at 5:30, University Settlement students will be in the large
cafeteria. Parents and caregivers can sign the students out directly with
the program supervisor of their child’s afterschool program instead of
signing out with the safety agent.

·       If a student in an afterschool program forgets something upstairs
during afterschool dismissal time, a staff member from the child’s program
will walk him or her upstairs to retrieve the item.

·       If you are picking up your child before the dismissal time of the
program, you will sign in with the safety agent.  For children in
University Settlement, the safety agent will direct you to the child’s
classroom where you will sign out the child on the afterschool roster.  For
children in Wingspan, the safety agent will call Matt (the site director),
and an adult will bring the child down to meet you.

·       When an older sibling does early pick-up, the sibling may go
upstairs to pick up his or her brothers or sisters. If the sibling has
friends or acquaintances with him or her, the rest of the group must stay
downstairs in the lobby.

·       If you’ve gone upstairs, when you leave the building, you’ll turn
in your pass to the safety agent, who will log the time out of the building.
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